The centrepiece of the Australian War Memorial is the absolutely stunning and evocative Hall of Memory, containing the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier. It is located at the far end of the commemorative courtyard, past the Pool of Reflection. Walk straight ahead when you enter the War Memorial. Continue reading “Hall of Memory”
As you enter the Australian War Memorial, passing between two medieval stone lions that once stood at the gateway of the Menin road at Ypres, now Ieper, your eyes will be immediately drawn to the copper clad dome of the Hall of Memory wherein lies the Tomb of Australia’s Unknown Soldier. Continue reading “Commemorative Courtyard and Roll of Honour”
This a summary and introductory review on the Australian War Memorial. On it you will find links to more detailed reviews on aspects of the memorial that I find particularly interesting (lots!) in addition to a little general comment.
“Here is their spirit, in the heart of the land they loved; and here we guard the record which they themselves made.” Charles Bean, 1948. Continue reading “Australian War Memorial – Lest We Forget”
This memorial is a vote of thanks to the United States for its assistance in World War II. The Memorial’s height and design make it one of Canberra’s best-known and most recognised monuments. Continue reading “Australian-American Memorial – Bugs Bunny”
The National Carillon, located on Aspen Island, Lake Burley Griffin, was a gift from the British Government to the people of Australia to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the national capital, Canberra. It was presented by Queen Elizabeth II on 26 April 1970. Continue reading “National Carillon And Aspen Island”
This memorial commemorates the 700 plus Australian police officers who have been killed on duty or who have died as a result of their duties – since Australian policing first begun. The names of the officers who died are inscribed on a bronze commemorative wall. The first policeman to die on duty was Constable Joseph Luker, aged 38, who was bludgeoned to death in Sydney on on 26 August 1803. Continue reading “National Police Memorial – See It At Night Too”
On the northside of the central part of Lake Burley Griffin and just across the road from the Carillon a (to use that currently (2017) trendy term – at least in Canberra) ‘pop-up’ coffee shop (or for the not so hip among my small readership a coffee van or cart) has appeared, on and off, over the last five or six years. Continue reading “Lake Burley Griffin – Northside: “Coffee by the Lake””
Without in anyway wanting to take from the reason for this memorial, it is, for me, one of the least aesthetically pleasing of Canberra’s many memorials. While it is a very smart and inspired design to appreciate it fully one would really need to see it from above. Additionally, its location (deliberate though it is), tucked away from the lakeside and close to the busy Morshead Drive means that you are unlikely to stumble across it walking around the lake. It took me, a very frequent visitor to the area, over three years to happen upon it. Continue reading “Remembering Workplace Losses”
On 26 December, 2004 (Boxing Day) a 9.1 magnitude earthquake off the tip of Indonesia’s Aceh province unleashed a most extraordinary and devastating tsunami which soon hit the beaches of 14 countries around the Indian Ocean on its westerly path. Fortuitously the tsunami, one of the most horrific natural disasters in recorded history, did not hit Australia – one of the closest land masses to the earthquake’s epicentre. Continue reading “Boxing Day Tragedy”
This memorial, located about 50m from the National Carillon and easily recognised as you walk along the northern shore of the central basin of Lake Burley Griffin is a five tonne anchor and chain of the type typically carried by a naval cruiser like the HMAS Canberra which it commemorates. The base of the memorial is in the shape of a ship. Continue reading “HMAS Canberra Memorial – Sunk in Service”
The Rambling Wombat 